learning curve
by stolen rite
Summary: rachel and ivy meet in high school
1. Chapter 1

**I own none of Kim Harrison's characters.**

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**Basic plot is Ivy has just left boarding school and is trying to sort her head out and starts school the same school Rachel attends**

**First day nerves**

It was going to be hell , I knew it from the second I woke up but I had to do this the first steps on getting myself a normal life. I'd never been to public school in my life it had all been private boarding school after another then Piscary had got involved and fucked everything up I have to do this, I have to put myself back in with normal people and I have to see if it works , see if I can go one day amongst kids my own age and not be some crazed blood junkie.

I gripped the sides of the bathroom sink my knuckles white from holding on so tightly. I kept repeating to myself that it was all going to be OK one day at a time Ivy, you can do this. Jesus I was terrified a building full of teenagers full of anger,lust and god knows what else they would be feeling and it was all going to hit as soon as I got to the door but I couldn't think about that right now. Get dressed idiot stop mopping in front of your bathroom mirror like some emotionally deranged twit and get on with it, I screamed inside my own head but I finally let go of the sink and brushed my teeth.

Back in my room I stood in front of my closet finally settling on a pair of old black jeans and a long sleeved black Takata t-shirt. The sooner I was dressed and out the house the sooner it would be to late to talk myself out of this.

Thirty minutes later I was dressed had brushed my hair put on my boots and manged to eat breakfast without throwing up , so far it was going good all that was left to do was grab my jacket and get into the car with my dad.

"Ivy are you ready , your going to be late if you don't hurry" Dads voice echoed from the front of the house. "I'm ready just let me get my bag and we can leave" picking up my bag from the floor next to the kitchen door I walked into the spacious hallway to find my dad already stood in front of our big dark wooden front door a smile ready on his face for when he saw me.

"Shall we get going then" he asked , I just nodded and let him open the door for me.

The cold air outside was refreshing and actually made me feel a little better I shrugged into my jacket and did up the silver buttons down the front. "so how do I look , think the cool kids will let me join their gang?" the look on dads face after I said that really cheered me up enough that I even laughed a bit. "Their aren't rely going to be gags are their Ivy my dear" god he was serious with the question as well. "No dad no gangs it was a joke as ha ha humor, you do have a sense of humor if I remember correctly" I gave him my best ignorant teenager look which drew a smile from him.

"sorry love but you know this is a big change for you, your not used to so many kids running round going wild" we walked side by side over the gravel to the car as he spoke to me. "Jesus dad their not animal their kids my age kids I should be able to fit in with I should be able to make friends with" . "I know Ivy but after this last year you have been through so much I'm just worried about you , its never too late to change your mind you know" he patted my arm as he spoke giving me his warmest smile. " Not changing my mind on this one dad I want to do this I want a whole new start at a new school , where nobody knows me" . " I understand sweetheart" he leaned over and gave me a kiss on the forehead. "Oh yer by the way Ivy these are for you" He handed me the keys he'd been holding in his hand. They were warm from where he been holding them by the metal ring.

"What are these for, ARE YOU LETTING ME DRIVE!" I almost jumped in the air, hey I was fucked up but still I was normal enough to almost have a fit at thought of being able to drive.

"actually their yours, your mother and me are letting you have the ford we've been talking about getting a new car for a while" I ran at him then throwing my arm round his neck and giving him a light kiss on the cheek. " Thanks dad" I beamed at him. " so will this get you in with the cool kids"he chuckled over at me while I was still on the verge of jumping up and down.

My drive to school had been great uplifting in fact I felt in a better mood , the car wasn't a hight tech sports machine it was a simple dark green ford but hey it was all mine and I was going to enjoy it. I may have gone slightly over the speed limit when no one was around but the feeling of the cold air coming through the open windows while I had takata's latest song turned up to full volume was great

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Wonderful another school day , They should abolish school crazy making us get here so stupidly early why couldn't school start at a reasonable hour like six or seven pm when everyone is fully awake and not still cleaning sleep out of their eyes. I was slouched on my desk while Mrs. Greggor took registration "Rachel Morgan", "Here" I mumbled back still to tired to to anything else but slouch and mumble. I was still sat in a sleep like daze when I saw the classroom door open and the girl walk in. Straight away all eyes where on her and she didn't even turn red not even a slight blush...the freak if that had been me my whole face would have been lit up like Rudolph's nose by now but she just walked calmly over to Mrs. Greggor's desk and handed her a piece of paper. God she was tall , taller than me and hardly anybody was taller than me she was pretty to with smooth skin long jet black hair down to her waist and really dark eyes, bet she didn't have to hide freckles and frizzy hair. God could I be anymore jealous.

"Class this is Ivy Tamwood she's just transferred here from everlake school , Ivy why don't you go take that seat over there next to Rachel" Mrs. Greggor pointed the new girl Ivy at the seat next to mine. Great now I'd get to sit next to the new rich snooty girl, she had to be rich if she'd been going to everlake the fee's there were more than what my house cost.

I drifted back into my daydreams until the bell for first lessons rang.

" Ivy , Rachel could I speak to you both for a moment before you leave"wonderful not even an hour into the day and I was already in trouble

I moved to stand in front of my form teachers desk Ivy hovering to my left. "wont keep you long ladies, Rachel you and Ivy seem to have almost the same time-table so if you could just show her round for today make sure she doesn't get lost or anything, Ivy I'm sure Rachel will take good care of you, now you get going before your late for your first lesson" Mrs.greggor dismissed from her class room shoeing us with a hand gesture, stupid woman I'd like to give her a hand gesture of my own.

When we were out in the hallway Ivy turned to me I got a good measure of her height we were almost exactly the same height right on eye level with each other. She was looking at me really weird when she turned round , she looked like she was about to have a panic attack. "Are y..are you ok?" I asked. " Yer I'm fine just a little overwhelmed been a bust morning you know" she sounded nervous when she spoke but with a silkiness to her voice. Standing closer to her I could smell her scent now like ash and incense I knew straight away after that smell she was a living vamp. I could of mentally slapped myself of course Tamwood one of the oldest vamp families in the city.

"You don't have to take me around all day you know I'm sure you don't want me tagging round behind you all day" she spoke softly her voice low her voice was her give away you couldn't really tell from the way she held herself but from her voice you could the girl sounded terrified.

" Nah I don't mind besides you can take the focus off me for the day being the new kid and everything" I gave her a smile. "What about your friends wont they mind?" , " Nope not to big on the friend front actually so you can be my buddy for the day" I let out a laugh and she gave me a quick smile as we set off for math


	2. Chapter 2

**Teenage kicks**

First week over and I hadn't bitten any one, I'd wanted to I'd even had to take myself and hide in a lesser used toilet until I felt I could go back around everyone.

My first day had been the worst tho walking round with that girl Rachel who changed her feelings every ten seconds therefore sending a new jolt to me every ten seconds, I'd almost bit her halfway way through lunch, instead I just ran off shouting something about feeling sick. I hadn't really seen her much after my first day I tried to avoid her someone with their emotions all over the place was not someone for me to be around unless she had a death wish anyway. Still I couldn't actually get her out of my head she'd been so nice bit to talky actually the girl hardly shut up but she was nice to me, she still gave me a smile and a wave when she saw me. I don't know why she was stuck inside my head , just the image of her walking down the hall her long curly red hair behind her, pale skin that almost glowed in the light and green eyes that drew me in whenever I looked at her. JESUS Ivy get a fucking grip on yourself . Fuck I'd done it again drifted off thinking about her what the hell was wrong with me.

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"Rachel, honey it's time to get up" My mum was at the door of my bedroom mug of coffee in her hand, trying to coax me out of bed with the smell of it I bet. "I'm up , what time is?" my voice was croaky as I sat up in my bed. " Its one o'clock plenty of time you don't have to be there until three I'll go make you some breakfast" mum went out the room closing the door over behind her. She hadn't been so bad lately she'd been remembering most things and not talking about dad so much she seemed a little happier than normal to, fingers crossed it lasted. I moved the covers back and forced myself to climb out of the warm nest of my bed. I'd go have breakfast before I got dressed I needed some coffee before I did anything.

Two thirty and I was sat in the passenger seat of my mum's car driving downtown to my first fencing lesson, I already had a black belt but you could never have enough training especially were I was thinking of heading with my life, the I.S just couldn't tell my mother that yet or she'd have a kitten. I was looking forward to these lessons tho they sounded fun plus they said it would help with balance and poise and footwork and I could use some poise I was growing real fast I was 17 and almost six foot tall and it made me look kinda gawky next to everyone in school.

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I had fencing lessons this afternoon I didn't really need them anymore they had just been to help me while I had been getting taller to help me not be so awkward but I'd begun to enjoy them so I carried on, it was something to focus on to take my mind off things once in a while it was like my small escape just for an hour and a half every Saturday. Today was not going to be an escape for me tho. While I was throwing on my running shoes I saw her walk in , Shit!! not what I needed as soon as I had seen her I'd felt it like an invisible hand reaching down to the pit of my stomach grabbing everything in there and squeezing my throat contracted and my heart beat a little faster. FUCK !! I felt like screaming , I knew what was happening I was getting a crush on Rachel ,oh shit no no.

I bobbed my head up just in time to see Rachel notice me, her hand shot up waved she grinned and started waking towards the bench I was sitting on. I could already feel my face heating up I was blushing , me Ivy , I was blushing I was an idiot sat her beaming red face grinning like some brainless twit as she walked over, she seemed to take forever to get to me.

"Hey Ivy, didn't know you took fencing lessons" .

"Yer , yer been doing them for around a year now, used to have one on one lessons when I was at Everlake" Oh great I was sounding like rich snob, yer go Ivy such a way with words, I was an idiot.

Rachel was good with a sword she picked everything up so easily, her movements were fluid and she was fast, she was easily one of the best in the group. After the first half of our lesson the instructor put us all in to pairs and just my luck I got Rachel Morgan ,fantastic.

Rachel and me began sparring it was going OK , but the more she started to enjoy it the worse i was getting I could feel hunger rise up in my throat made all the worse by Rachel ,she was moving in so close to me I could feel the heat from her body, smell every pheromone she giving out. I wanted to just reach out grab her and sink in to her neck I could see the soft skin just above her collar bone the beads of moisture on her neck. I couldn't control myself I had to get out of here away from her. She moved in again to take a swipe at torso and on instinct alone I reached out grabbed her arm and threw her down . Before she even new what had happened I was on her , I could smell her fear rising pushing me more and more into the predator I didn't want to be.

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Ivy was on top of me, I don't know what happened one second we were just sparring the next she was pinning me the floor her fingers digging into my shoulders, she was breathing hard her face inches away from mine. Thats when I noticed her eyes they had gone utterly black . Shit I had my face inches away from a living vamp who had just lost it to blood lust , jesus she was going to fucking bite me. I didn't know what do I'd never seen a vamp lose it before.

"Ivy Tamwood what are you doing!" the instructors voice boomed from across the room , from the corner of my eye I could see his feet coming towards us.

"You know what I'm doing don't you Rachel , you can feel it , you want this" she moved her right hand from my shoulder and on to my face her fingers tracing my jawline. "It only hurts for a second then it will be like heaven, everything else will melt away then its just you and me and that exquisite bliss from a vamp bite" her voice was silky smooth she was throwing an aura and it was working I could feel my pulse quicken and myself melting into her voice.

Ivy was suddenly ripped off me three sets of hands pulled her up and away from me , but sensations and pheromones she'd been kicking out were still there making butterflies in my stomach. I brought myself up and lent on my elbows. The instructor and two of the men in the class had pulled Ivy off me they had her held against the sports hall wall. She managed to shove the shorter of the men away and the instructor. She turned her gaze to the man left holding , who quickly backed off. I couldn't tell from where I was if her eyes were still vamped out but she seemed calmer, no not calmer just less savage or was it seductive. The instructor moved back towards her arms ready to grab hold of her again. "Don't bother I'm leaving" she walked over to the bench where bag was picked it up and headed for the door, as she was about to turn out of the doorway she turned back and looked at me. As soon as she looked in my direction I felt a jolt race through my whole body tingling were her fingers had been on my face


End file.
